1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a comb and hairbrush holder and organizer for convenient storage and organization of a number of combs and hairbrushes. More specifically, it relates to a bristle-type holder which frictionally engages the teeth or bristles of a comb or brush, respectively. More generally the bristle holder may be used to support and organize any thin elongated objects as required in various work environments. For example the bristle holder of this invention might prove useful to support envelopes in a mail room or nails in a carpentry shop.
Thus it can be seen that the potential fields of use for this invention are myriad, and the particular preferred embodiment described herein is in no way meant to limit the use of the invention to the particular field chosen for exposition of the details of the invention.
A comprehensive listing of all the possible fields to which this invention may be applied is limited only by the imagination and is therefore not provided herein. Some of the more obvious applications are mentioned herein in the interest of providing a full and complete disclosure of the unique properties of this previously unknown general purpose article of manufacture. It is to be understood from the outset that the scope of this invention is not limited to these fields or to the specific examples of potential uses presented hereinafter.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The storage and organization of combs and hairbrushes has always presented a problem in bathrooms, dressing rooms, and other relatively small rooms. The cramped quarters in these areas makes limited countertop space crowded and inconvenient. Combs and brushes themselves do not occupy a large amount of volume and tend to be strewn about in travel kits, drawers, medicine chests, or on countertops. In large families the considerable number of combs and brushes belonging to various family members tend to get mixed up and lost. The prior art in this area has been searched at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The following patents were uncovered. As will be seen, the simplicity and effectiveness of my invention is not rivaled in the prior art.
Faltersack U.S. Pat. No. 3,980,608, issued on Sep. 14, 1976, shows a knife rack which self-adjusts to blade thickness. The patent does not disclose bristles as a holding medium. Also, the patent does not allow for variable side-to-side positioning of the knives as they must be inserted into one of the available slots. By contrast, my invention uses bristles and allows for the supported articles to be placed at any random position at any orientation.
Berry U.S. Pat. No. 4,325,484, issued on Apr. 20, 1982, shows a holder for elongated articles. The patent does disclose bristles as the holding medium but the bristles are oriented differently from my unique construction. The facing bristle construction of the patent does not allow for variable side-by-side positioning of several articles as it is primarily designed to support a single article. By contrast, the device of the instant invention uses bristles emanating from a substantially planar surface and allows the supported articles to be placed at any random position at any orientation.
Hofer U.S. Pat. No. 5,005,710, issued on Apr. 9, 1991, shows a retaining device for tools, writing instruments, and the like, which is made from a slitted foam block. The patent does not disclose bristles as a holding medium. Also, the patent does not allow for variable side-to-side positioning of the knives as they must be inserted into one of the available preexisting slits. By contrast, my invention uses bristles and allows for the supported articles to be placed at any random position at any orientation.
Drower U.S. Pat. No. 4,936,469, issued on Jun. 26, 1990, shows a storage rack for small articles comprising a series of resilient retainer loops. The patent does not disclose bristles as a holding medium. Also, the patent does not allow for variable side-to-side positioning of the knives as they must be inserted into one of the available pre-existing slits. By contrast, my invention uses bristles and allows for the supported articles to be placed at any random position at any orientation.
It will be noted that all the prior art devices require the supported articles to be positioned in fixed and predetermined positions with respect to one another. This causes problems of supporting and accessing numerous items of widely varying shapes and sizes. Also, they are all designed to receive a rigid portion of the supported article, such as a handle. These limitations of the prior art make it inappropriate to support combs by their teeth or brushes from their bristles as contemplated by my invention.
None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.